Time-warp Volvo for sale

What kind of a new car can you buy for $50,000? A nice Porsche Cayman, perhaps, or a Lotus Exige? How about something even more out of the ordinary, like a 1973 Volvo 1800ES? A Maryland Volvo dealer is offering an orange 1800ES with just 273 miles on the odometer for $49,995. We did say new, right? This car has never been registered. “People have come in from Sweden to look at it,” said Mike Herron, the used-car manager for Annapolis Volvo in Annapolis, Maryland. Herron said the car arrived at the dealership in the mid-1990s, apparently part of the inventory of another dealership that had gone out of business. The car gets started and driven about once a month, but don’t expect a lengthy test drive. “I think it would take some severe arm-twisting,” Herron laughed. Don’t expect the Volvo to come with a new-car warranty, either. “I’m pretty sure it’s out of the factory warranty,” he said. If you’re starting to think that Annapolis Volvo isn’t what you’d call a motivated seller, you’re right. “The owner doesn’t really care to sell it,” Herron told us, since it’s earning its keep by attracting passers-by to the showroom. The car is nicely equipped, with a four-speed gearbox with overdrive, air conditioning, and an AM-FM radio. Take a look for yourself at www.annapolisvolvo.com.

(This post originally appeared in the January 4, 2007, issue of the Hemmings eWeekly Newsletter.)